


Maybe

by mogujyu



Category: MAGNUM (Korea Band), TREASURE (Korea Band), YG Treasure Box (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Fluff, Light Angst, M/M, Red String of Fate, YoonHoon
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-03-08
Updated: 2019-03-17
Packaged: 2019-11-13 16:06:42
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 5,904
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18034814
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mogujyu/pseuds/mogujyu
Summary: Ha Yoonbin and Park Jihoon are roommates. They are also soulmates. They are connected to each other. Even without love, none can live without the other. It's their destiny but they don't believe in destiny. They know how life is not that simple and love is hard to earn.





	1. First Meeting

**Author's Note:**

> A YoonHoon (Ha Yoonbin x Park Jihoon) au. Soulmate AU. A kind of fanfic that revolves around a setting where everyone is bound by a Red String of Fate that ties the soulmates together.
> 
> I wrote this for fun and my own shipping satisfaction. If you actually find this au, I would be really surprise. I kinda made my own soulmate theory :D Thank you and enjoy!

The day finally came. The first day of the first term finally came. Jihoon and Yoonbin were finally university students. The two of them moved out from their house to the dorm a week before the term started so they had pretty much known each other by then. They were happy to be roomed with someone from the same department and also happened to be going to attend the same class as themselves. Yoonbin felt mostly relieved. Being the quiet guy he was, he was quite worried. It had been a while since he left Korea and now that he was back everything felt different. He was always the type who worries inside but would do fine anyway. Jihoon, on the other side, just loved having new friends. He loved to gather people, adopting the introverts and befriend them. He was known as the sociable one. But most knew him for his loudness. Just a week in the dorm, he already befriended almost everyone in his corridor. Everyone had gotten used to his loudness in the morning. He was so energetic that he could tire everyone around him just by looking at him.

Yoonbin, though as quiet and cold he seemed to be, quickly gotten attached to Jihoon's loudness. He called it as 'positive energy'. He liked that about Jihoon. For someone who was quiet, Yoonbin liked having friends who could make him feel comfortable and optimistic. For the first week together, there were times when all he had to do was sit down and listen to Jihoon's stories all night. He didn't care how long. He liked it. They were fun times for Yoonbin. He liked his stories and how he told them. He liked how happy Jihoon looked when telling them. He didn't know why but he felt drawn to him.

On the first day of class, Jihoon was up earlier than usual. They had their first class at 9 a.m. but Jihoon felt obligated to wake up at 6 a.m. and be there as early as possible before the class actually started. Of course, he had to drag Yoonbin with him. Being alone would be boring, right? Yoonbin being who he was, would follow everything Jihoon said. Because believe it or not, Yoonbin did depend on Jihoon a lot.

"Yoonbin, you okay?" Jihoon asked in concern after seeing Yoonbin yawning as they were walking to the campus. The time was just 7:30 a.m. An hour before their actual class. They were planning to grab breakfast together in front of the campus.

"Was it wrong for me to wake you up so early in the morning? Sorry... Haha," Jihoon laughed awkwardly as he scratched his head lightly. Jihoon was loud but he wasn't dense. Actually, he was more mature than anyone at his age could be. He loved taking care of others.

"No, it's okay. It's the first day of school. And the weather makes it feel so worth it to wake up this early," Yoonbin answered with his awkward smile. It wasn't that he was feeling awkward but that was just how his smile looked like. It looked like he was really sleepy too because of it.

"You know that smile doesn't match anything you just said, but I understand. That smile is just who you are," Jihoon responded while shaking his head slightly before returning Yoonbin's smile.

"Come on, let's race! Whoever loses pays for the meal!" Jihoon said as he hit Yoonbin's shoulder playfully before dashing off ahead of him.

"Okay! Don't go back on your words if I win!" Yoonbin wasn't even surprised. Actually, Jihoon's action actually made him smile even wider and he felt finally awake while running, trying to overtake Jihoon's big lead he earned by cheating. But it was too easy for Yoonbin. When he arrived first, Jihoon was still 5 seconds behind Yoonbin.

"Hey, not fair~ You exercise. You're not supposed to use all of your energy for this one petty bet," Jihoon complained cutely.

"Ahahaha, and you weren't supposed to cheat either so I guess we're even," Yoonbin laughed.

"You're really.. nevermind," Jihoon stopped at his words. He was looking at Yoonbin blankly as the latter was brushing his hand against his hair playfully as if to mess it up. His heart skipped a little but his thoughts were probably too loud for him to notice.

Jihoon was being a big brother and ordered for both him and Yoonbin. It had been a long time since Yoonbin was actually eating in a small simple food stand tended by an auntie in her fourties so he was confused on what to order. Jihoon got them both rice and soup with pork tenderloin. Might be a bit heavy for breakfast but it was a little something to start off the day and he hoped that Yoonbin would like it. 

They were having a little chat about the upcoming class when the auntie brought the food to the table and they thanked her politely. Jihoon grabbed two spoons and gave one to Yoonbin before Yoonbin could actually move.

"At least, I'm faster when it comes to these things," Jihoon smiled a cheeky one. He might not like it but he was always very thoughtful and one week knowing Jihoon was enough for Yoonbin to notice.

"Thanks," Yoonbin said as he took the spoon.

They had been having meals at the dorm for a week now so the warm soup really did hit the spot for both Yoonbin and Jihoon.

"Is it okay?" Jihoon asked as he watched Yoonbin wolfing down his food.

"Yea, it is," Yoonbin replied before focusing back to his food.

"You had been staying at Australia so I was worried it might not match your palate but I'm glad you seem to be enjoy it very much," Jihoon laughed as he watched Yoonbin. It was a bit surprising for him. Ha Yoonbin who seemed very mature at first, had these little quirks that could make anyone go awe on him like a little kid. Seeing him like that made him as happy too.

Suddenly, the auntie brought another bowl of soup with a couple of meatballs in them.

"Sorry, but we didn't order this," Jihoon said politely.

"No, it's on the house from me. It's been a long time since I've saw anyone your age eats with so full of heart like that. You remind me of my son when he was just your age," the auntie explained as she looked at Yoonbin happily.

"Thank you, auntie," Yoonbin thanked her as he smiled.

"So you CAN smile like that," Jihoon commented once the auntie walked away.

"Smile like what?" Yoonbin asked, confused.

"Just eat your food, boy," Jihoon laughed cheekily.

By the time they finished their food, it was still 8:15 a.m. but they decided to head to the campus already. They went to the auntie to pay before leaving. But before Jihoon could open his wallet to pay, Yoonbin took some money from his pocket and gave it to the auntie without a second thought.

"I guess I'm faster when it comes to this," Yoonbin teased.

"H-Hey, aren't I supposed to be the who pay? I lost the race!" Jihoon asked in confusion.

"Does it matter?" Yoonbin smiled.

"Y-Yes, now you're making me like I'm the petty one!" Jihoon complained. No, he was sulking, really.

"You two look new around here. Are you two first years?" the auntie asked.

"Yeah, we are," Yoonbin answered.

"Really? Then good luck for your studies! It'll make this old lady if you two come again. Don't bully each other too much," the auntie laughed and waved them goodbye. Yoonbin and Jihoon thanked and bowed to her before leaving. 

"What a nice lady," Yoonbin commented as they walked to their campus.

"Hey, don't pretend you didn't hear me. I'm paying you back you hear me," Jihoon raised his voice a bit, trying to get Yoonbin to respond. He felt awkward and mostly guilty somehow. Yoonbin stopped walking and faced Jihoon.

"Don't. You had been taking care of me for a week now. I just did it because I felt like it," Yoonbin responded with a smile. The smile, not that sleepy and forced smile he had showed earlier that morning. This time, it was the charming and attractive smile he showed the aunt. Jihoon just stayed silent for a while.

"Thanks, but I'm paying next time," Jihoon mumbled.

"Deal," Yoonbin replied. Suddenly, he felt his eyes were lost somewhere in Jihoon's eyes. He found himself staring blankly toward Jihoon. He didn't know what it was. But Yoonbin felt something. He was sure what he felt was not any kind of emotion. It was something more concrete and stronger but at that moment, he still couldn't name it yet and neither could Park Jihoon. And... They weren't brave enough to question it either.


	2. Like a Bad Dream

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yoonbin was prone to a bad dream from the past. That's why he always woke up, cranky. But that wasn't just the reason.

They finally got to their first class of their first term. But as expected, the class was still empty when they got there. Not everyone was as excited for class as Jihoon was. But not long after they got into the class, someone else came too. It was a guy. Tall with a nice hair and a pretty face. He had every criteria nailed into him to be a popular guy. And as soon as he laid his eyes on Jihoon and Yoonbin, he immediately smiled and greeted them.

“Hi! Are you two in the same class as me? And I thought I was early, I guess I’m not,” the pretty boy greeted so loudly.

Jihoon nudged on Yoonbin and whispered, “I dunno why but I already don’t like him…” and earned himself a light hit on the back.

“Oh, hi. I’m Yoonbin. Ha Yoonbin,” Yoonbin reached his hand out for a handshake.

“Oh yeah! How rude of me! I’m Kim Junkyu!” Junkyu took Yoonbin’s hand. There was something about Kim Junkyu that bothered them a bit. Junkyu was as loud as Jihoon was but something seemed different. He seemed much more...glittering? Brighter? So bright. But Yoonbin knew that would be wrong to judge a book by its cover. Jihoon on the other hand, jumped a bit when Junkyu looked at him but he didn’t let all glitter get to him. Guess there was still something that could even scare the great Park Jihoon.

“And you are?” Junkyu asked.

“Oh, I’m Ji hoon! I mean I’m Park Jihoon. Nice to meet you, ahaha!” Jihoon answered loudly, not wanting to lose to Junkyu. Yoonbin found it a little funny to see Jihoon and Junkyu conversing.

Class got crowder as the time got closer to 9 a.m. By that time, Jihoon had already been around the class, asking people for the names and befriending them. He even managed to adopt a quiet and expressionless Japanese student named Asahi to come and sit with Yoonbin, Junkyu and him together. When Asahi introduced himself to Junkyu and Yoonbin, he only simply mentioned his name and then, done. There was no details, greetings whatsoever. Was it because he still couldn’t speak Korean? But why would he take a class in Korean if so? It left Yoonbin puzzled but he decided to leave it. Out of all the people in class, they were really the most unusual group of people. Yoonbin felt like he was the most normal one out of the four of them but he was already weird just being with them.

Class finished faster than they expected it to be since it was just their first class. And the class progressed more peacefully and uneventful unlike how they expected it to be for their first day so Jihoon still had much energy to spare. Jihoon and Yoonbin didn’t have any more class for the day so Yoonbin decided to go home. Not for Jihoon though, he went to hang out with the new friends that he made in class earlier, Jang Yunseo and Yoon Jaehyuk. Jihoon begged Yoonbin to join but he looked tired so he gave up. In the end, Junkyu ended up coming along with them.

Yoonbin sighed as soon as he got into his room. He put his back down and fell, face first on his bed. It was tiring but his first day went pretty well all thing considered. He rolled back so he could see the ceiling. He stared at it for quite a while in silence before he lifted his left hand to where he could see it and his stare went blankly again.

“...”

“At the year of 20, they say…” Yoonbin hummed.

“It’s almost time..” he frowned.

Yoonbin lowered his arm to his forehead and sighed again. He hated being alone, really. Cause his mind would just wonder where it shouldn’t be. Yoonbin hated thinking about it but he couldn’t help but remember the bad memories that came when he was alone.

“I wish that day would never come…” Yoonbin mumbled one last time before falling deep asleep.

Yoonbin’s long nap got grandly disturbed when Jihoon got home. Jihoon didn’t know that Yoonbin was asleep and when he got in the room, he immediately lowered his voice down.

“Oops.. Sorry, didn’t know that you were asleep,” Jihoon apologized as he brought in food at both his arms and put them down on the coffee table. 

“It’s okay… What time is it? I think I have been sleeping for forever…” Yoonbin yawned as he rubbed his eyes and got out of his bed.

“Yes, you’ve been. It’s already 6 p.m. How are you supposed to sleep tonight?” Jihoon replied as he was preparing all the food with all the necessary cutleries and brought out the drinks to the table.

“We have no class tomorrow. I’ll get by,” Yoonbin responded, still sleepy.

“Wow, lucky you. Now, shall we eat?” Jihoon smiled.

“Yeah…” Yoonbin sat on the floor, across Jihoon and they began eating dinner in silence.

“Are you okay? You look upset. Did you have a bad dream?” Jihoon asked. For once, he was being serious. He was worried because Yoonbin seemed different.

“No, I didn’t. Why do you say that?” Yoonbin asked back.

“I dunno. I just kinda felt it.. Oh. Uhm, nevermind. Forget I said anything,” Jihoon shrugged in slight panic.

“Yea, good choice,” Yoonbin replied coldly.

The atmosphere was gloomy. The air was heavy. They could barely see each other in the eye. Jihoon could feel something. He felt a pain. But the feelings weren’t his. He wasn’t the one who got hurt but he could feel it. He had a idea as to why and where the hurt came from but he didn’t want to question. It could have been all just his imagination. He was probably just tired. That could be why he was feeling like this.

“Yoonbin?” Jihoon mumbled.

“Yeah?” Yoonbin responded.

“I’ll bring the soup we had this morning for breakfast tomorrow. Sounds good?” Jihoon said.

“Sounds good,” Yoonbin replied.

Yoonbin smiled wryly yet he still didn’t dare to look up at Jihoon and Jihoon was probably doing the same. He hoped that the feeling would disappear. The one feeling that scared him. But it wasn’t so easy. It wasn’t that simple. He wished it wouldn’t be, but the feelings felt very real. One week with Park Jihoon finally opened his eyes to the door that he had always feared to open the most. Because once opened, there would be no more going back. Yet he knew what he was trying to avoid was reality itself…


	3. Two Hearts, One soul

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> People say soulmates can share their emotions with each other but in some other cases, it's not just their emotions.

A month pass since the first term started. Jihoon’s name had already spread throughout the university by then and he had joined the dance club too because he just loved to dance. Yoonbin on the other side, had met some people who happened to have the same hobby as him. What did they do? Produce music. New music. Arranged it. Anything. Asahi and Yoonbin unexpectedly got along well as friends. In addition of a new friend named Yoshinori. The three of them became close in no time. Always going to the school’s studio every time they had the chance. Jihoon was happy to see Yoonbin was making friends pretty well despite how cold and scary he seemed at first.

Jihoon and Yoonbin spent less time together but they still promised to have dinner and sometimes, breakfast or even lunch together if they had the time. Those times would always be Yoonbin’s favorite time of the day. He liked Jihoon’s stories. Although it was sad that he couldn’t be in it. Yoonbin thought it would be better if they spent their time apart more. Because he had been feeling weird lately. He had been feeling feelings that weren’t his. And it was seriously messing with his thoughts. He hated it. Not as much as he hate rainy day though. And he just had to forget his umbrella at the dorm that day. Yoonbin sighed.

Well, the dorm was just a five minute walk from the campus. It wouldn’t hurt him to go under the rain for a brief 5 minutes, right? Worst-case scenario he would catch a cold but he was stupid enough to believe that day wasn’t one of his unlucky days. He was stand corrected. When he got into the dorm, he was all drenched. He got into his room to dry himself with a towel and changed into warmer clothes but he couldn’t stop himself from sneezing. Now, he had done it.

Jihoon got home into a sleeping Yoonbin. He was feeling extra tired from practice that day so he didn’t realize that Yoonbin was sick until he heard him groan in his sleep. Which he didn’t usually do.

“Yoonbin, are you okay?” Jihoon asked as he approached Yoonbin on his bed and sit on the side. He put his hand on his forehead to check his temperature.

“You have a fever, Yoonbin!” Jihoon screamed in panic.

“Yeah, I know! Shaddup…” Yoonbin moved Jihoon’s cold hand from his forehead and rolled away from Jihoon.

“Your hair is all wet too.. Did you take a shower in this condition?” Jihoon asked as he scanned the room and found a bunch of wet clothes in the bathroom.

“YOU RAN IN THE RAIN, DIDN’T YOU!? WHAT HAPPENED TO YOUR UMBRELLA? WHY CAN’T YOU JUST LOOK FOR ME IF YOU DIDN’T HAVE ONE???” Jihoon was practically yelling. He wasn’t mad. Or, maybe he was. But he had every right to be. There was no way Yoonbin didn’t know Jihoon was still at the campus. He wasn’t stupid enough to miss the cold shoulder Yoonbin had been giving him for the last one week.

“...” Yoonbin ignored him. Jihoon sighed.

“Have you eaten?” Jihoon asked once he had calmed down. Yoonbin just nodded in response.

“Have you taken your medicine?” Jihoon asked again.

“...No. I don’t know where it is,” Yoonbin mumbled.

“Really?” Jihoon responded in disbelief.

“You really can’t live without me, huh?” He stood up and took out the medicine box from their wardrobe.

“Here,” Jihoon handed the pill and then went to prepare a glass of water for Yoonbin. After he finished taking the pill, Jihoon tucked Yoonbin to sleep. But he couldn’t leave his side. Even after he fell asleep, Jihoon wouldn’t leave his side. He couldn’t. He didn’t have the energy to stand left. His body was burning up as hot as Yoonbin’s was. Feeling a pain that wasn’t his.

“How can someone so smart be so stupid… Do you know how much it affect me?” Jihoon muttered as he sit down on the floor beside the bed.

“So this is why I had been feeling so weak since a while ago…” Jihoon continued before he fell asleep by the bedside.

Not along after Jihoon fell asleep, Yoonbin woke up and carried Jihoon to his bed. He knew. He knew that Jihoon was also feeling the same fever he was feeling and the same pain as his too. Then, there was no way Jihoon could be okay. As he carried him, Jihoon woke up. 

“Wha..Whhat are you doing..?” Jihoon stuttered his words, unable to talk properly with his throat getting dry thanks to the fever. He was talking, half-asleep.

“Don’t talk,” Yoonbin whispered.

He placed Jihoon on his own bed and went to take a pill and the glass of water Jihoon prepared for him earlier. He supported Jihoon’s back, who could barely open his eyes, so he could take the pill and also supported his neck to drink the water. He tucked Jihoon in his bed and sit on the bedside for a short while once done. Yoonbin was probably thinking of nothing. Things couldn’t get anymore obvious. Yoonbin raised his left arm and stared emptily at it before looking back to Jihoon.

Jihoon woke up from his bed in the morning which kinda surprised him because he didn’t remember falling asleep on his bed yesterday. He was more surprised when he found Yoonbin was nowhere to be found. Jihoon looked at his right arm in heavy silence. He knew... Sooner or later, the truth would be shown on their face. But Jihoon didn’t want it to happen. Because he could feel what Yoonbin felt and he wouldn’t want him. Jihoon wasn’t sad though. He too never one to put so much faith in destiny. Why? No complicated reason for Jihoon. 

The myth about people connected by the red strings wasn’t just a myth. Now, he knew. But their future looked bleak honestly. Yet, Jihoon was determined to stay by Yoonbin, even if the guy was just going to see him as a friend forever. He was fine with it, as long as Yoonbin didn’t push him away. He never really saw someone who was denying his own soulmate so strongly like Yoonbin was. Strong enough to delay their strings from revealing itself when, it was already 2 two months after Jihoon’s 20th birthday. Maybe it was just never meant to be. If love was that easy then why would anyone could have a broken heart over someone who wasn’t their soulmate?

Yoonbin returned to the room with porridge for the both of them. He had gotten much softer than he thought he was. He started to feel like it was useless to fight against destiny. If he couldn’t accept it, then he should just ignore it. He was just tired of running away from reality. He just wanted to spend more time with Jihoon. He wanted to stay by his side more. Be in the stories that Jihoon would tell to his friends. Be that irreplaceable friend for Jihoon because he wouldn’t want anymore than that. He felt sorry for Jihoon but he felt incapable of falling in love.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And it gets a bit more complicated lmao.. Posting this today for Jihoon's birthday, I guess haha


	4. An Omen

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A slow day for both Yoonbin and Jihoon. Amidst all, things are slowly unfolding between them.

Yoonbin used to listen to his mother’s stories. How she and his father met. How they knew they were soulmates even before the string revealed itself and what happened after they found out. How romantic it was from the start to the end. She always tell Yoonbin that the red string could never be wrong. It showed them the truth. She believed that soulmates are connected not just by the string but also by the heart. And how the heart affects the connection. The red string of destiny is magical.

He never really had any problem of listening to the story his mother told him. He practically grew up listening to those stories but he never really thought anything of it. The red string is never wrong. Never is a big mistake because an incident that he saw in front of his eyes changed his mind forever. He became scared. He became unsure. It was not that he didn’t believe in soulmates but he started to think maybe he was better off living without it. He grew up older with that mindset. He thought he could fight against destiny but he was proven wrong. Destiny was not something anyone could avoid.

Soulmates share special and magical relationship. They are said to have perfect compatibility and understanding. Being soulmates mean completing one another. Every living beings have a soulmate. Of course, there are some cases where it didn’t work out between soulmate to the point of breaking apart. There are no such things as perfection after all. There are also cases where soulmate ended up marrying other people. As rare as they are.

Soulmates are not just limited to life partners. They can be friends, strangers or whatever. Basically, soulmate is the pillar of hearts. They basically share their emotions and support each other subconsciously, even if they never met each other. The stronger the string that bound the two, the harder it is to break. People like to misunderstand that all soulmates are supposed to be romantic. But that was never the case at all. But Yoonbin was different. It wasn’t about believing or not. Yoonbin was just scared to find out.

That morning, Yoonbin woke up to a very unexpected peaceful morning. It was a Sunday. No wonder. Yeah, Jihoon would be weirdly calm on Sundays because he said there was no reason for him to be loud. He mentioned something about sharing others his positive energy because everyone else always seemed so out of it during weekdays.

It was just 8 a.m. Even Yoonbin had gotten used to waking up early everyday. But it wasn’t such a bad feeling. Because he would wake up to Jihoon and the coffee his friend had prepared for him.

“Good morning, Bin,” Jihoon greeted as he put their mugs on the coffee table, which was located between their beds so all Yoonbin had to do was to drag himself out of his bed and sit himself on the floor.

“..Morning,” he yawned as he greeted back.

“Ahaha, you’re just not a morning person, aren’t you? Too bad for you, you’re stuck with me,” Jihoon teased as he watched Yoonbin falling back to sleep immediately, almost dropping his head on the table.

“Watch out for the coffee,” Jihoon said as he moved the mug out of Yoonbin’s way. 

“It’s not that bad…” Yoonbin mumbled, half-asleep.

“Say that again when you’re finally wide awake,” Jihoon laughed.

“Hey, let’s go out today, okay? Let’s go watch a movie,” Jihoon said excitedly.

“What movie..? With who?” Yoonbin finally raised his head properly and tried to look at Jihoon as he rubbed his eyes with one hand carefully.

“Just whatever! Only the two of us!” Jihoon was just like a little kid being excited about a day off out.

Yoonbin just nodded in response and drank the coffee from his mug as he listened Jihoon talked his mouth off. Yes, just another usual morning.

The two of them went to the cinema at noon. Jihoon insisted that there was a movie he wanted to watch and he insisted that he wanted to watch it with Yoonbin no matter what. It was unexpected though. The movie he wanted to watch was a romance. Definitely not a movie that suited Yoonbin and not to mention, two guys going to the cinema watching a romance movie. But Yoonbin couldn’t say no. He didn’t want to disappoint Jihoon.

When they got to the ticket counter to buy their tickets, the cashier just looked at them funny. Not that they cared though. The moment the cashier mentioned the ticket price Jihoon quickly took out his wallet. Because he knew, if he didn’t, Yoonbin would pay for it again. It felt like whenever he was with Yoonbin, he would never have the chance to use his own money. He felt bad and uncomfortable but he could never say no because how Yoonbin always managed to convince him to let him pay every time. He did try to return the favour by buying Yoonbin dinner home when he had the chance.

“I’m paying for this. No buts,” Jihoon said quickly as he gave his money to the cashier.

“I could have just paid for my ticket,” Yoonbin responded.

“I know you and I am pretty sure it won’t end with just yours,” Jihoon countered with a ‘I-know-you-so-well’ smile to Yoonbin.

They went ahead to buy snacks afterwards because the movie was about to start. And this time, Yoonbin was ready and he didn’t even miss a second. Which got Jihoon a bit dumbfounded.

“Why do you like to pay for me all the time? Do you do this to all your friends? Won’t you go broke that way?” Jihoon asked once they got their popcorn and cokes.

“Of course I don’t. I am only doing it because you take care of me so much every single day. I just wanted to return the favour,” Yoonbin smiled to Jihoon gently. His smile got Jihoon under his spell. 

“Oh, I need to go to the restroom. You mind waiting for a while?” Yoonbin excused himself.

“Y-Yeah, sure,” Jihoon nodded in silence, still in daze.

Jihoon felt his heart beating crazily for a second. He felt like he was going crazy. He felt hopeless but somehow he felt good too. As so many feelings mixed up inside him, Jihoon suddenly realized. He was surprised when suddenly a red string appeared on his wrist. It was shining weakly. It was fleeting, like a fire about to go out but it was certainly there. He was both happy yet scared. Because if he was seeing this, then Yoonbin must had seen it too. How would he react?

When Yoonbin came back, Jihoon quickly hid his right arm behind him and tried to act as natural as he could. But Yoonbin still caught on.

“Jihoon, what are you hiding?” Yoonbin asked, curious.

“No, nothing. Don’t worry about it!” Jihoon answered, secretly wishing so Yoonbin would just shrug it off.

“Hmm, okay. How about we go now?” Yoonbin said before he took the popcorn and his coke that he left with Jihoon and started walking.

Jihoon was relieved. But when he took a look at his right wrist one more time before chasing after Yoonbin, the red string was gone. Just like that. What did all of it mean? Who would know? And judging by Yoonbin’s behavior, it seemed like he didn’t see it. Was it even possible for the red string to appear briefly and just disappear out of nowhere like that? Thanks to the unexpected happening, Jihoon couldn’t pay attention at all to the movie. He couldn’t with all the questions hanging in his head.

As for Yoonbin, he quite enjoyed the movie to his own surprise. The beautiful love story with two strong main characters. A love story between two destined soulmate. A story that everyone yearned to have. Not for Yoonbin though. He did like the movie but the thoughts of his own soulmate always scared him. Loving someone scared him. He wasn’t confident that he could carry the burden of his own feelings.

He would look at Jihoon from time to time while the movie was playing. But Jihoon was not paying attention. Not to the movie nor Yoonbin. Jihoon felt envious. Jihoon wanted to love and be loved as much as everyone did. But he was scared that Yoonbin might push him away more if someday the string finally revealed itself before their eyes.

Jihoon was sure. Yoonbin was the one. His soulmate. The one destiny chose for him. But would Yoonbin choose him? That was a question no one had the answer to for the moment. Jihoon hated to admit it but he knew his heart. He had already begun falling.

They had lunch together after the movie. Jihoon was acting oddly though. He was as talkative as ever but he was not paying attention. And everytime Yoonbin tried to discuss the movie with him, Jihoon would change the subject. Yoonbin felt this uneasiness. It didn’t come from him, it came from Jihoon, which got Yoonbin worried.

“Hey, do you wanna go take a walk at the park before going home?” Yoonbin asked.

“Yeah, sure,”Jihoon answered. He never thought Yoonbin would be the type to take a walk on the park. He thought it would be a good change of pace.

When they got into the park, they decided to sit back and relax on the bench. They watched as people walked by while having small talks. Seemed like Jihoon started to act like himself again. The fresh air and green view really did help. At one of these time, it would feel great if there was good music to accompany them, Yoonbin thought.

He finally thought of a music he and Asahi just arranged the other day. He brought out his MP3 player and offered Jihoon to listen too sharing his earphone. With Jihoon using the right earbuds and Yoonbin using the left. It was an old song. A song that he used to listen at home with his parents. His parents’ favorite song.

“It’s a nice song,” Jihoon complimented. He seemed to really enjoy it. Watching people as they go, they fell into a silent. A pleasant brief one. As the singing part started, Jihoon was startled.

“Is this your voice? You can sing?” Jihoon asked and look at Yoonbin in surprise.

“Yeah…” Yoonbin answered, feeling a bit embarrassed.

“Isn’t this an old song? The kind of song that our parents would listen to. Never thought you would be the kind to listen to songs like these..” Jihoon commented.

“I’m not. But this one is special. I made it for my mom. It’s almost her birthday,” Yoonbin replied.

“You’re really good though. You really do love music, huh?” Jihoon said before they went into a brief silent again and enjoyed the rest of the song.

“My mom used to love singing this song. She used to listen to it everyday. I was always there. She would tell me stories about my dad and her. She would never stop smiling. She always said that she was glad to meet my dad, her soulmate and that I would be as happy as she was in the future,” Yoonbin told Jihoon as he stared off to the distant. He didn’t look sad but he wasn’t exactly smiling either.

Jihoon never thought the word ‘soulmate’ would come out from Yoonbin’s mouth. He decided not to miss his opportunity to ask a question he had been wanting to ask.

“How about you though? What do you think you would feel?” Jihoon asked. He looked at Yoonbin, serious.

“I don’t know… Am I supposed to be happy? I used to believe that I would but I really wish I could,” Yoonbin answered, forcing a wide smile for Jihoon after.

“There are things I want to forget. If I don’t, I don’t think I would ever be happy,” Yoonbin continued. 

Jihoon decided to stop asking. There seemed to be something more to Yoonbin’s feelings toward the word ‘soulmate’. Something that he shouldn’t butt in until the time was finally right.

“Yoonbin, you know that I would always be there for you, right?” Jihoon nudged at Yoonbin as he brought his biggest and comforting smile.

“Thanks, Jihoon,” Yoonbin thanked Jihoon from the bottom of his heart. They probably had known by then. The connection between the two of them. Only them. That was why Jihoon’s words meant so much deeper to him. He could hear Jihoon’s heart beating faster, because of him and only for him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't know what to make of this chapter lmao really. Next few chapters there gonna be more plot


End file.
